Cider-press



N0. 2 ,2 Patented Apr. I8, I899.

J. H. JENNINGS.

CIDER PRESS.

[Application filed Nov. 1, 1897.)

(N0 MudeI.)

iArnNT Prion.

JOSEPH HENRY JENNINGS, OF MIDDILEW'AY, VEST VIRGINIA.

CIDER-PRESS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 623,281, dated April18, 1899.

Application filed November 1, 1897. Serial No. 657,084. (No model.)

To aZZ whom it may concern;

Be it known that I, JOSEPH HENRY J EN- NINGS, of Middleway, in thecounty of Jefferson, State of 'West Virginia, have invented certain newand useful Improvements in Cider-Presses, of which the following is acomplete specification, reference being had to the accompanyingdrawings.

The object of my invention is to produce improvements in machines forexpressing by a process of gradual reduction the liquid or cider frompomace, whereby the expulsion of the liquid is facilitated and in whichapparatus is provided for collecting and conveying the expelled liquid.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure I is a longitudinal Verticalsection of my machine complete. Fig. II is a sectional view on the lineII II of Fig. I.

Referring to the figures on the drawings, 1 indicates the shell of mymachine, which may be made of suitable material and of any suitable sizeand dimensions. It is preferably provided at one end with a hopper 2,that communicates with the interior of the shell, discharging,preferably, against an inclined partition 3.

lVithin the body of the shell I provide two series of rollers. 4indicates each individual roller of the lower series, and 5 eachindividual roller of the upper series. The number of the rollers in thelower series preferably exceeds that in the upper series by at leastone, the terminal roller of the lower series being located partiallyunder the inclined partition Each of the rollers 4 is mounted, as upontrunnions 6, in suitable bearings in the side walls 7 of the shell. (SeeFig. II.) The rollers 5 are mounted in like manner upon trunnions S insuitable bearings in the side walls 7. One of the trunnions 8 of theroller 5, next to the hopper 2, may be elongated, as indicated at 0, andprovided with a drivc-pulley 10. (See Fig. II.) Beginning with theopposite rollers 4 and 5 next to the hopper 2, each succeeding pair ofrollers is mounted in closer juxtaposition one to the other until thelast pair of rollers is reached, when their peripheries are brought intoclose frictional contact.

Between each of the rollers 5 I employ a spacing-block 11, substantiallytriangular in cross-section and firmly mounted, as shown in Fig. II, inthe side walls 7 of the shell. The surfaces 12 of the respective blocks11 are tangential with the periphery of each of the rollers. Between thefirst and last of the rollers 5 there is by that means constructed apractically continuous downwardly-inclined wall, of which the severalperipheries of the rollers 5 constitute the movable sections. All of therollers 5 are surrounded by a belt 13, preferably consisting of' apermeable fabric,

provided upon its edge with a chain of flexible links 14, that arefirmly united to the belt and which engage with sprocket-teeth 15,ranged around the ends of each of the rollers 5.

Through the employment of the belt 13, secured to the rollers, in themanner described the belt is caused to travel taut and smoothly over thefaces of each of the rollers 5 and to communicate motion from the roller5, to which the pulley 10 is secured, to each of the other rollers 5 ofthe series. tional contact of the rollers 5 with the last of the rollers4 the belt 13 imparts motion to the last roller 4.

All of the rollers 4 are united by a belt 16, similar to the belt 13,being provided upon its opposite edges with a chain of links 17, thatmesh with sprocket-teeth 18 upon the opposite ends of each of therollers 4. By this means the motion communicated from the last of therollers 5 to the last of the rollers 4 is also communicated to eachroller 4 of the lower series.

Between adjacent rollers 4 opposite to each of the blocks 11 I provideatilted spacingblock 20, secured in the side walls 7 of the shell 1. Theblocks 20 serve with respect to the rollers 4 not only to perform theoffice which the blocks 12 perform with respect to the rollers 5, butalso by their tilted position to prevent buckling of the belt 16 betweenthe rollers 4 when in operation it is loaded with pomace. The blocks 20have their forward edges or the edges near the hopper 2 tilteddownwardly out of contact with the under surface of'the belt 16.

Each'of the blocks 20 is provided with a spout or stripping-plate 21,one edge of which, as indicated at 22, is secured to the block, and theother edge being free rides resiliently Through fric-v upon theperiphery of the next adjacent roller 4:. The stripping-plates or spoutsare designed to carry off the liquid compressed from the pomace by eachsuccessive set of rollers 4 and 5. Each spout is provided with aterminal discharge-aperture 25, that communicates through one of theside walls 7 with a common inclined trough 26.

I prefer to provide in operative proximity with the last rollers of eachof the series ro tary brushes 26 and 28, which, rotating in oppositionto the direction of the movement of the rollers against the face of theaprons 13 and 16, serve to keep them clean of pomace and to discharge itafter final compression through the tail-gate 29 of the shell 1.

In operation pomace deposited into the hopper 2 drops upon the belt 16and is carried by it and the belt 13 in the direction or" the arrowsbetween the first pair of rollers 4 and 5. It is there, in the firstplace, merely accumulated, the rollers land 5 serving merely as formingor feed rollers, the distance between their peripheries being so greatas to exert little or no pressure on the mass of pomace deliveredbetween them. It the pomace be not equally distributed to each of thesuccessive rollers, it will interrupt the operation of the machine, andit is in this view of the conditions necessary to the practicaloperation of the machine that the first set of rollers may be regardedas feed-rollers. Carried by the belts 13 and 16 the pomace is carriedbetween the next rollers and is there subjected to pressure whichexpresses some of the liquid or cider, but without clogging theoperation of the machine.

The cider expressed is caught in the spout 20 and passes out into thetrough 26. The compressing operation is carried on between eachsuccessive pair of rollers L and 5, each one serving to express aportion of the moisture which remains in the pomace until the last setof rollers is reached, when through the close j uxtaposition of theirperipheries all expressible moisture is separated from the pomace, whichis discharged practically dry through the tailgate 29.

What I claim is" 1. The combination with two series of rollers, theirdriving mechanisms, and belts, of spacing-blocks between adjacentrollers, and an individual spout for each pair of the rollers of thelower series, substantially as set forth.

2. The combination with two series of rollers, their driving mechanisms,and belts, of spacing-blocks between adjacent rollers, an individualspout for each pair of the rollers of the lower series, and a commontrough communicating with the several spouts, substantially as setforth.

3. The combination with two series of rollers, their belts, and drivingmechanisms, of tilted spout-bearing spacing-blocks between the adjacentrollers of the lower series, substantially as set forth.

In testimony of all which I have hereunto subscribed my name.

R. WV. RILEY, W. S. ALEXANDER.

